"So what are we going to do?"
Shole's question hung heavy in the air.
"It's not the same for all of us." Artlem said. "Shole, you know you always have an out, but I can't imagine you taking it."
"Of course not," Shole said.
"I am going to finish what we started," Artlem said. "I'm going to kill whatever bastard's in charge and anyone who gets in my way. The Kavalix are always scattered, different groups traveling and trading around the peninsula. I'll find a group and figure out how we're going to do this. But Kage and Bard, I need to know what you're going to do. Obviously the situation's changed since we last talked about this. "
Kage looked at the ground, then met Artlem's eyes, then looked back to the ground. Bard, too, didn't say a word. He sat, head down, deep in thought.
"Art, look!" Shole broke the silence, pointing upwards.
High above them, a bird circled in the air, quickly descending to their level.
"It's one of ours!" Artlem exclaimed, jumping to his feet. Kage recognized black, brown, and red feathers on the the bird as similar to the one that had brought the message back in Duurchelm, maybe even the same one.
"How did it find us?" Kage said
"It's drawn to my Calligriphic," Artlem said. "Some of us wear it as a charm around our next, and we send the bird to a specific one."
Artlem held out his arm and the bird landed, his hands shaking as he removed the parchment from the canister on it's leg.
He held his arm to Shole and the bird hopped over so Artlem could use both hands to open the message.
He let out his breath in a sigh of relief.
"She's alive! My mother's alive." Artlem said, choking on the words.
Shole put his free arm on his shoulder as Artlem continued reading.
"She's warning me about our home. About Achrom," he said. "She was away at the time, but heard from one of our scouts. They're going to send a group to bury the bodies when it's safe." Artlem's expression grew serious again as he kept reading.
"She says that she and the other Kavalix are going ahead with their part of the plan. They're going to go through Tobryna and recruit whoever they can. But now, they'll also be on the run from Rhoringdall's soldiers," he commented, then continued. "So we're continuing on to Mainspring. We have to destroy the Contract Stone if this is going to have any chance of succeeding."
"But now, we're also going to have soldiers on our backs," Shole said. "So we can't go straight up through Rhoringdall. We'll have to go around."
"So thought Urdokk, and then Tahliah." Bard said.
"Right," Artlem nodded. "The Ra'bac are already sympathetic to our cause, my clan and theirs were the two loudest voices for destroying the contract. If we can get up there, we'll be able to get help and make a plan."
"So I guess it's settled then," Bard said. "We'll take turns keeping watch through the night and get going at dawn tomorrow."
"Wait, so you're coming?" Artlem said. "I mean, you've done what we agreed, to the best of your ability. You couldn't talk with my father, but..." He trailed off.
"I'll stick around a bit longer. We'll see once we get to the Ra'bac."
"Well, I'm grateful," Arltem said. "What about you, Kage? We already gave you an "out", but that was before all this."
Kage paused. They were certainly desperate for help at this point, but still giving her an option. If she left, they would have to find someone else to go to Mainspring, and good luck finding someone while on the run. And the truth is, she didn't have much to lose. It was just her, stuck in this strange world trying to make sense of it all.
If she had had time to think about it, she would have been at it for hours, so instead she forced out the answer that came to mind.
"I'll stay." Her mouth moved almost on it's own.
"Regardless of whether I'm the right choice, they need me, and I'm just going to have to figure it out" Kage thought.
Artlem and Shole appeared visibly relieved.
"Thanks, both of you," Artlem said. "We can still do this. We're going to free Tobryna and topple that damn king at the same time." He began digging in his pack. "I'm going to send a reply, and I'll be up so I'll take the first watch."
"I can go next." Shole said.
"Third?" Kage said, making sure Bard didn't want that specific time.
"I'll go last." Bard said.
The four of them moved to their makeshift beds under the night sky. As Kage looked up at this world's constellations, she couldn't help but think of Islestar, and how long ago that seemed.
Kage wasn't entirely sure why she'd made the decision to stay with the group. Sure, she was getting some money out of it, but it was really more about them accompanying her through this world so she could figure it out before being stuck on her own. Though if she was going to die because of it, that really defeated the whole purpose.
High chance of dying, being on the run - she would definitely be better off going on her own, but somehow that wasn't what she wanted. The truth that she had to dig out from under all the noise in her brain was that she didn't want them to die.
She didn't want them to end up like Artlem's father, his tribe, or so many others she'd see , not after trying so hard, or being willing to sacrifice so much.
She wanted Bard to make it back to his family, Shole to be able to explore the world freely like he wanted, Artlem - what did Artlem want? It wasn't the throne, that was more something slowly being pushed on him. Well, so she didn't know what Artlem wanted, but she knew for sure that he didn't deserve this. And maybe, if they all stuck together, they wouldn't have to lose anything else.
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